Chairman Watson and members of the County Council:

CB 6- 2008 enables the Department of Housing and Community Development to assign certificates of eligibility to individual apartment complexes. The Department could also assign the determination of eligibility to occupy a unit within a continuing care retirement community to the retirement community. The bill states the Housing Commission has the option to purchase moderate-income housing units before the end of the priority period or subsequent sale of the units.

The League of Women Voters of Howard County supports County Council Bill 6-2008. The proposed provisions in Section 13.405 are optional for the Department of Housing and Community Development and offer the opportunity to the private sector that is marketing the housing development to be responsible for accepting applications and certifying eligibility for apartment rental units for moderate-income housing. A similar provision, Section 13.406A is proposed for Continuing Care Retirement Communities.

Section 13.406A establishes a subsidy fund for continuing care retirement communities that are certified by the Maryland Department of Aging to defray the rental component of any fee charged for the occupancy of a moderate income-housing unit so the unit will be affordable to a household with an annual income equal to or less than 60% of the median income.

The League supports the proposed changes to Section 13.407 regarding the powers of the Housing Commission to purchase moderate income housing units.

The League suggests an amendment to proposed Sections 13.405 and 13.406A that would require the Department of Housing and Community Development to perform periodic audits of the apartment complexes and retirement communities where it has granted assigned responsibility and report the results of those audits to the County Executive and County Council.

Grace Kubofcik
Co-president